Roger Allen Slifer[1] (November 11, 1954 – March 30, 2015) was an American writer of comic books, animation, and video games, who co-created the character Lobo for DC Comics. Among the many comic-book series for which he wrote was that publisher's Omega Men for a run in the 1980s.

Slifer was the victim of a hit-and-run accident in 2012 that left him in institutional care until his death.

Slifer started out in comics as a member of the so-called CPL Gang, a group of amateur comics enthusiasts based in Indianapolis, many of whom later went on to careers in the comics industry.

By the mid-1970s, Slifer was working as a freelance writer for Marvel Comics. Thanks to Marvel staffers (and former CPL Gang members) Duffy Vohland and Tony Isabella,[4] in the late 1970s Slifer was hired as an assistant editor at Marvel,[5] where wrote for a number of comic-book series including The Defenders.[6] Eventually, Slifer became a special projects editor at Marvel, overseeing comics magazines published by Marvel's parent company, such as the The Rampaging Hulk. During this time, Slifer worked on the Marvel Classics Comics line, in addition to film adaptations.[7]

S.L.I.F.E.R., the Society for Legal, Investigative and Financial Empowerment and Recovery, was created in July 2012 to assist in bringing the hit-and-run driver to justice and providing updates on Slifer's condition.[15] The nonprofit assistance organization The Hero Initiative helped raise money to assist in Slifer's legal case and medical care.[14]

Slifer's sister Connie Carlton took over his care, and in late July 2012, Slifer was moved from UCLA's Ronald Reagan Neuroscience/Trauma Intensive Care Unit to Barlow Respiratory Hospital in Los Angeles. At that point, he was still comatose.[16] Slifer's condition improved at Barlow, and he emerged from his coma. In late September 2012, he was transferred to the sub-acute care facility Goldstar Rehabilitation Services, in Santa Monica.[17]

As of late February 2013, Slifer was awaiting surgery to replace the portion of his skull removed immediately after the accident. Carlton had arranged to transport Slifer to Indiana for further rehabilitation.[18] He died March 30, 2015.[19]

^Manning, Matthew K.; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1980s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 202. ISBN978-0-7566-6742-9. When space-bike-riding renegade Lobo made his debut during the "Citadel War" storyline in The Omega Men by Roger Slifer and artist Keith Giffen, he was hardly recognizable as the rebellious anti-hero who would become one of the best-selling DC characters of the 1990s.